objective infantile spasms (is) or west syndrome is a convulsive disease characterized by brief, symmetric axial muscle contractions (neck, trunk, and/or extremities).the therapy universally recognized as most effective in the treatment of is, is treatment with the adrenocorticotropic hormone (acth) or oral corticosteroids. this therapy however has important side effects. many studies have soug...

The rapid corticotropin test with synthetic corticotropin ( 1-24 peptide) was studied. A single intravenous injection of the corticotropin was performed in 26 human subjects. The increment of plasma 11-0HCS concentration by the administration was less than that of NH-corticotropin dripping infusion or synthetic corticotropin intramuscular injection. Intramuscular rapid corticotropin test was co...

The sturgeon is a primitive actinopterigian fish that, unlike modern teleosts, possess a portal vascular system that connects a true median eminence with the anterior pituitary as in mammals. The occurrence and localization of corticotropin and corticotropin releasing factor-like immunoreactivies were examined in the brain of the sturgeon (Acipenser ruthenus L.) by immunocytochemistry with anti...

The development of a 'two-site' immunoradiometric assay (i.r.m.a.) for the direct estimation of human corticotropin-(1-39)-peptide in plasma is described. The assay is based on the simultaneous addition of 125I-labelled sheep anti-(N-terminal corticotropin) IgG (immunoglobulin G) antibodies and rabbit anti-(C-terminal corticotropin) antiserum to standards and unknowns (0.5 ml) followed by 18h i...

A radioimmunological method for the sensitive estimation of plasma corticotropin immunoreactivity (ACTH) using commercially available reagents is presented. The method involves silica extraction of corticotropin from plasma, desorption with acid protein solution, neutralization and subsequent radiomimmunoassay (RIA). [125I]corticotropin is added as internal standard to the plasma sample. The am...

The modulation of voltage-dependent calcium currents (I(Ca)) by corticotropin was studied in acutely dissociated rat amygdala neurons using whole-cell, patch-clamp recording techniques. Application of corticotropin(1-24) or corticotropin(4-10) increased I(Ca) in a concentration-dependent manner, with half-maximal effective concentrations of 65 and 176 nM and maximal increases of approximately 7...

background: irritable bowel syndrome (ibs) with chronic abdominal pain and changes in bowel habits in the absence of any organic cause is identi_ed as the most common known gastrointestinal disorder. ibs affects both sexes and can occur at any age. diagnosis of this disease in younger patients and women is more likely. in the pathophysiology of ibs, hereditary, environmental, visceral, psycholo...

PURPOSE To assess the feasibility of somatostatin receptor scintigraphy for patients with Cushing's syndrome caused by tumors secreting ectopic corticotropin or corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH). PATIENTS AND METHODS Ten patients with Cushing's syndrome, nine with ectopic corticotropin-secreting tumors and one with a CRH-secreting tumor, were consecutively studied. For comparison purposes...

Whole-cell patch-clamp and extracellular field recordings were obtained from 450-microns-thick brain slices of infant rats (10-13 days postnatal) to determine the actions of corticotropin-releasing hormone on glutamate- and GABA-mediated synaptic transmission in the hippocampus. Synthetic corticotropin-releasing hormone (0.15 microM) reversibly increased the excitability of hippocampal pyramida...